Is it vehicular cycling, is it bike lanes outboard of the parked cars, or is it something else? Plenty of choices and I'm not specifically advocating for one over the other...MCA recently toured the new bike facilities in NYC and this is what he has to say about US placement of bike lanes:

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mikael Colville-Anderson

One thing that I just don't understand is that there are stretches of bike lane that are not placed along the sidewalk. Parked cars line the sidewalk and the bike lane runs between them and the traffic. So instead of only keeping a sharp eye on opening doors, I had to watch for doors, parked cars pulling out AND the moving traffic.

You'd think that this most basic of Best Practice principles for bicycle infrastructure was the very first thing that would be adhered to. It is clear that in almost all the cities in the world that enjoy high levels of urban cycling and that reap the economic and societal benefits of these levels, the Sidewalk/Bike Lane/Parking/Traffic model is firmly in place.

also - some good photos of bike-specific infrastructure in NYC in the link.

genec

10-06-09 07:48 AM

1 Attachment(s)

In Barcelona they did the same sidewalk/ bike lane/parking set up... but at intersections, the corners of the were cut back to make intersections an octagon vice a square. This first gave head in parking at the corners, but it also moved the bike lanes out into a very visible space where motorists could see them quite well. I wonder if such a thing could be done in NYC and other cities.

Of course if it means cutting back buildings, I doubt it would be done.

Bekologist

10-06-09 07:54 AM

to find 'best practices' for bicyclists as part of a transportation network communities should:

look to proven examples of what has worked in cities around the world with high rider share;

never loose sight of who the design bicyclists are;

and understand the mechanisms behind which the public does NOT ride and neuter any segments of transportation planning that serve as barriers to greater participation in bicycling.

'obeying the rules of operators of vehicles' is bottom of the barrel in 'best practices' of infrastructure design - in fact its not considered partof the infrastrcture at all!!! but john freakorester can rest assured, bikeways planning in america is based on lawful and competent cycling behavior.

40 years ago copenhagen was clogged with auto traffic and suffered from low ridership, but they corrected the path of transportation planning there to recognize bikes in the transportation mix.

locally, along a route in a beach community of seattle where a bike path was continued along a major street, seattle placed sharrows in the road adjacent to the path. a great example of american 'best practice' to reflect the differing needs of differing segments of the public.

american best practice design should continue to predicate no mandatory sidepath laws and recognition there is an imperative to consider and serve public road cycling.

Bekologist

10-06-09 07:58 AM

there are a fair bit of americanized 'best practice' designs at AASHTO and the FHWA.

See, I don't think the vast majority of American cities will ever have a "high rider share" and to spend a lot of money on infrastructure is, in a lot of cases, a waste of money. You can try the "if you build it, they will come" model, but I think a better model, at least in my city, would be to come up with ideas to allow bicycles to peacefully co-exist with cars within the existing infrastructure with a minimum of investment. Grand projects will never get the support to go forward.

So what works? Sharrows, especially along secondary roads and neighborhood roads. Establishing bike routes running through neighborhoods instead of along busy streets... routes that actually connect and go places... Enhancements in "permeability"; i.e., allowing bicycles to pass through the end of a cul de sac to get to a main road when such access is not desired for cars; putting little cut-throughs where doing so allows a cyclist to pass through an area more efficiently with less extra miles.

Bekologist

10-06-09 09:19 AM

best practice design will definetly vary by location.

keep in mind that "paint is cheap" and that as speed differential increases a more seperated approach is 'best practice' by most every measure of LOS, BLOS, or BCI of a roadway.

sggoodri

10-06-09 09:31 AM

High-cost isolated facility projects (like long cross-town paths with grade-separated road crossings) can attract high volumes of recreational cyclists, who are most elastic in their route choice, but have less effect on utility cycling, particularly outside that corridor. Improved connectivity of the secondary road network and neighborhood streets, and better design standards for the busy arterials, can provide a more widespread benefit. On the road network, vehicular cycling should be considered the best practice; if bike lanes are marked, they should be marked where experienced, defensive bicycle drivers would operate and not in places inconsistent with defensive vehicular cycling or where they would discourage motorists from merging right in preparation of right turns. Traffic laws should be enforced for all road users, and public education and encouragement programs should promote safe and lawful road use. Roadways should be maintained with smooth pavement with frequent sweeping to remove debris that accumulates in bike lanes. Bike parking should be required at important destinations such as commercial properties. Bike route maps and wayfinding signs can help cyclists find pleasant routes for both recreational and utility cycling.

Bekologist

10-06-09 09:42 AM

off road bike highway networks have the capability to enhance transportational cycling across americanized landscapes of typisch american sprawl - as seen in denver and minneapolis. Core cross town paths have very realistic potential of enhancing transportational cycling if they are along an identified bike transportation route.

don't discount the potential value of a cross town bikeway path network or conversion of a ill-used cooridor for bicyclist use to enhance communities bikeability and 'best practice' for bicyclists in the highway design process.

sggoodri

10-06-09 09:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bekologist
(Post 9807263)

off road bike highway networks have the capability to enhance transportational cycling across americanized landscapes of typisch american sprawl - as seen in denver and minneapolis. Core cross town paths have very realistic potential of enhancing transportational cycling if they are along an identified bike transportation route.

don't discount the potential value of a cross town bikeway path network or conversion of a ill-used cooridor for bicyclist use to enhance communities bikeability and 'best practice' for bicyclists in the highway design process.

I expect to see an increase in utility cycling along the American Tobacco Trail route in Durham NC as the rail-trail connectivity increases. It has already increased utility cycling in the immediate downtown area. Other trails in central NC have attracted large increases in recreational cycling in those corridors. I believe the level of use they attract from recreational users alone warrant their construction as park facilities that can also serve utility uses depending on location. Careful planning can improve their utility value.

City-wide, however, the overall street topology/connectivity, land use patterns, demographics, bike parking, and arterial design standards have greater effects on utility cycling levels.

chipcom

10-06-09 09:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by genec
(Post 9806625)

In Barcelona they did the same sidewalk/ bike lane/parking set up... but at intersections, the corners of the were cut back to make intersections an octagon vice a square. This first gave head in parking at the corners, but it also moved the bike lanes out into a very visible space where motorists could see them quite well. I wonder if such a thing could be done in NYC and other cities.

Of course if it means cutting back buildings, I doubt it would be done.

off road bike highway networks have the capability to enhance transportational cycling across americanized landscapes of typisch american sprawl - as seen in denver and minneapolis....

And everywhere else, including the Greater Seattle Area. There's an old unstated bellief in many prime residential and resort areas. It goes something like, 'After I move here, no one else should.'

Residential sprawl, and I am no fan of it, is a necessary consequence of freedom of choice. Deal with it.

Bek, if you had your way, everyone would be confined to the inner city and only be allowed to move via bicycle. All of those who currently live in suburbia would be required, through eminent domain, to give up their homes and trade them for central city apartments. No individual would be allowed car ownership. Our sole choice would be public transport or the bicycle..

I can honestly see some benefit for all of this, but it ain't gonna happen except in some nightmarish 'utopia' where big sister dictator imposes her will on the individual 'for the good of all.'

Sounds like some great pipe dream by a sophomoric uberidealist college student, but of course it's complete horse puckey.

The only realistic alternative is to 'grandfather' in the existing lucky folk who have their private country homes, and deny this luxury to any one else. All fine and good Bek and it could happen in the former Soviet Union, but not in the United States of America.

Portland’s acclaim as one of America’s most
livable cities is a result of innovative planning
efforts inspired by the vision of involved
residents to rethink how they wanted to live.
Over the past decades Portland has enjoyed a
vibrant transportation system that promotes
bicycling, walking and transit. Th e Portland
Bicycle Plan for 2030 builds upon the City’s
success and aims to transform Portland into a
world-class bicycling city.
Th e Portland Bicycle Plan for 2030 advocates
for bicycling as a legitimate and necessary
transportation mode and promotes bicycling
as an increasingly important element in
developing a community that is healthy, safe,
and aff ordable for all its residents. It advances
the notion of bicycling as a reasonable means
of transportation for many common trips and
elevates bicycling to the status of a main pillar in
Portland’s new urban transformation.
Portland’s evolution
In the early twentieth century, Portland, like
most American cities, began to redevelop its
urban transportation network to accommodate
increasing use of the automobile. Th is
redevelopment had signifi cant impacts on the
function and form of downtown and inner
disenfranchised – all to meet the spatial
demands and operational needs of the
automobile.
During this time Portland began experiencing
increased urban growth in once rural areas,
resulting in landscapes designed specifi cally for
the automobile and without basic amenities
such as bike lanes, sidewalks or access to public
transportation. As a result, residents had few
reasonable transportation options beyond the
car. Commercial districts developed as multi-
lane automobile-oriented corridors fronted
with acres of parking lots which made bicycle
and pedestrian access uninviting, indirect and
dangerous.
In the fi nal third of the twentieth century,
concerned Portland residents and business
leaders who were committed to revitalizing
downtown, improving air quality, and
introducing more transportation choices
worked with strong, responsive government
leadership to shift Portland’s direction.
Supported by the introduction of innovative
statewide land use planning, Portland reclaimed
its downtown, rejected planned freeways, and
built the nation’s fi rst light rail system.

yep. my socialistic ideas alone :roflmao:

such wildly inaccurate skew, danarnold.

pacificaslim

10-11-09 06:31 PM

God damn. Will we ever have a Bek free thread so we don't have to keep going over the same old ground over and over and over and over and over? He turns every thread into the same one.

On topic: one potential problem with sidewalk-bikelane-parking-driving lane arrangement is to figure out how to keep the bikelane clean in areas where cars are allowed to park overnight. We'd have to prohibit overnight parking or go to a rotating "no parking" schedule so that the street sweepers could get in there and clean up (they clearly can't fit between the parking area and the sidewalk, so the cars would have to be removed). Also, in many cities, the curb area is under trees so swapping a bike lane that is out more in the roadway for one that is near the curb instead would mean dealing with a lot more fallen leaves in the fall than current bike lane placement.

Which is worse: dealing with leaves and debris or being closer to moving cars? You choose. I will ride my bike regardless, and think the whole "bike infrastructure" argument is largely mistaken.
There are places that have high bike usage and happen to have good bike infrastructure (copenhagen) and there are areas that have no real bike infrastructure other than parking (japan). What areas of high ridership have that we don't have in the usa is good public transportation and mixed-use neighborhood design. Those two allow one to use a bike for many trips because shops are in the neighborhood, and then ride their bikes part of their trip and then get on the train to go long distances. Without both of those things, people will continue to drive cars and bikes will be either recreational devices or hipster magnets (the latter is what accounts for the high usage numbers is portland, seattle, san francisco and the like).

randya

10-11-09 06:42 PM

^^ actually, I'd say there are many more commuter/utility cyclists in inner Portland than hipsters on bikes, although both are pretty common at this point.

Bekologist

10-11-09 06:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pacificaslim
(Post 9839775)

God damn. Will we ever have a Bek free thread so we don't have to keep going over the same old ground over and over and over and over and over? He turns every thread into the same one.

On topic: one potential problem with sidewalk-bikelane-parking-driving lane arrangement is to figure out how to keep the bikelane clean in areas where cars are allowed to park overnight. We'd have to prohibit overnight parking or go to a rotating "no parking" schedule so that the street sweepers could get in there and clean up (they clearly can't fit between the parking area and the sidewalk, so the cars would have to be removed). Also, in many cities, the curb area is under trees so swapping a bike lane that is out more in the roadway for one that is near the curb instead would mean dealing with a lot more fallen leaves in the fall than current bike lane placement.

Which is worse: dealing with leaves and debris or being closer to moving cars? You choose. I will ride my bike regardless, and think the whole "bike infrastructure" argument is largely mistaken.
There are places that have high bike usage and happen to have good bike infrastructure (copenhagen) and there are areas that have no real bike infrastructure other than parking (japan). What areas of high ridership have that we don't have in the usa is good public transportation and mixed-use neighborhood design. Those two allow one to use a bike for many trips because shops are in the neighborhood, and then ride their bikes part of their trip and then get on the train to go long distances. Without both of those things, people will continue to drive cars and bikes will be either recreational devices or hipster magnets (the latter is what accounts for the high usage numbers is portland, seattle, san francisco and the like).

damning god because my perspective leads towards acomodationalism?

screw your lousy religious smears, dude. lame.

One simple idea to facilitate bike traffic on roads ajacant to separated bikeways is sharrows on the main part of the street in addition to the separate facilities.

simple, easily executed. don't know if portland will do it but here locally they use the sharrows + path right of way design in some spots to great effect.

danarnold

10-11-09 08:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pacificaslim
(Post 9839775)

God damn. Will we ever have a Bek free thread so we don't have to keep going over the same old ground over and over and over and over and over? He turns every thread into the same one.

:thumb:

Answer, no.

Example:

Anyone: "Has anyone ever seen a red throated wood thrush on their rides through the country?"

Bek: "bike lanes are coming and it's high time. Damn the red throated whatsit's habitat. Seattle and Portland have long ago realized the priority of bike INFRASTRUCTURE over woodland idylls. Besides, cars have already run the little buzzards off."

Anyone: "Not buzzards, Bek, red throated wood thrushes."

Bek: "ridiculous! Obviously you are unfamiliar with the latest NASHAATTOF report on buzzards and bike lanes, you lazy lout. you and john forezter and his ilk need to stop fawning over red breasted turkey buzzards and get behind bike lane infestation while there's still time."

pacificaslim

10-11-09 09:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bekologist
(Post 9839903)

damning god because my perspective leads towards acomodationalism?

Not because of your perspective, but because of how you choose to communicate that perspective.

(btw, i don't think accommodationalism is a word, but if it were, it'd probably be spelled the way I just did so if you decide to make it the new buzzword, feel free to borrow that spelling.)

Bekologist

10-11-09 09:32 PM

you're just upset you cant' make up new misspelled words like i can!

seriously, dude. whats your problem? woodthrushes? got anything about BICYCLING??? wait, i see. you're concerned about how to keep the bikelane clean. wow. they make machines that do that. i suspect portlands bikelanes get swept by bike tires pretty well anyway.

What areas of high ridership have that we don't have in the usa is good public transportation and mixed-use neighborhood design. Those two allow one to use a bike for many trips because shops are in the neighborhood, and then ride their bikes part of their trip and then get on the train to go long distances. Without both of those things, people will continue to drive cars and bikes will be either recreational devices or hipster magnets (the latter is what accounts for the high usage numbers is portland, seattle, san francisco and the like

you think it's recreational riders and the hipsters? fueling the ridership in portland, san francisco and seattle? :roflmao:

Quote:

Originally Posted by portland master plan

In the fi nal third of the twentieth century,
concerned Portland residents and business
leaders who were committed to revitalizing
downtown, improving air quality, and
introducing more transportation choices
worked with strong, responsive government
leadership to shift Portland’s direction.
Supported by the introduction of innovative
statewide land use planning, Portland reclaimed
its downtown, rejected planned freeways, and
built the nation’s first light rail system.

seems we're in agreement.

Randya wants discussion about 'best practices' for accomodating bikes in the transportation mix, and i oblige with thoughtful commentary about how this is done and for whom.

you just want to ***** that there's other ways to plan for bikes in the transportation mix than just forcing everyone to RIDE LIKE A CAR.

randya

10-12-09 03:49 AM

Bek - What I think they are saying is don't be the John Forester of facilities, dude!

I'll bet we can have a rational discussion with Dan and pacificaslim without all the rhetoric. In fact, I'll bet we all ride more alike than different.